2 charged in sex assault of Ferndale girl

Two men who police say were simultaneous boyfriends of a Ferndale woman face charges of having sex with her underage sister.

One of the men -- Jeromie Koppen, 31, of Waterford Township – was in Ferndale 43rd District Court for a pre-exam conference Thursday. He was arraigned Saturday on three counts of third-degree criminal sexual assault on the girl, 15, and is free on $50,000 bond.

Police said Koppen was recently arrested on an outstanding warrant on the charges, which were filed by the Oakland County Prosecutor’s office in May.

The second suspect – Edward A. Sherman, 30, of Ferndale – is still being sought by police on a warrant for third-degree criminal sexual assault, Ferndale Police Lt. William Wilson said.

“We don’t know where Sherman is at this point and we have a warrant out for his arrest,” Wilson said.

Police said the two suspectsn lived with the Ferndale woman and used heroin with her.

“The victim was also apparently brought into this drug world,” Wilson said. “At the time these sexual assaults happened the suspects were living in Ferndale with the victim’s older sister and mother.”

The sexual assaults that Koppen is charged with happened on New Year’s Day in 2012, according to court records.

The girl eventually contacted a counselor at Ferndale High School about the sexual allegations in September, police said.

“The victim told the counselor she was having problems,” Wilson said. “It was at that point that we were brought in to investigate the case.

The three sexual assault felony charges again Koppen are each punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Koppen is scheduled to return to court for a preliminary examination at 2 p.m. Monday.